


oh good, it’s done. wait, shit—

by chaoticmoron



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: BAMF Steve Harrington, F/M, Good Babysitter Steve Harrington, M/M, Steve Harrington Has Powers, Steve Harrington Needs a Hug, Steve Harrington-centric, harringrove if u squint, no betas we die like alexei, robin’s a nerd, the party loves steve
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-13
Updated: 2020-08-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:21:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25877338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chaoticmoron/pseuds/chaoticmoron
Summary: after seeing the disgusting death of the mind flayer, steve was SO ready to go home, and sleep. of course, he can’t do that in hawkins. steve never thought the attention would be on him this time around, though.
Comments: 9
Kudos: 78





	oh good, it’s done. wait, shit—

the last thing steve remembered was hugging robin close in the ruin of starcourt mall. next thing he knew, he was in an ambulance in the parking lot, wrapped in a shock blanket. steve quickly realized he’d lost track of robin and the kids, so he thanked the emt dressing his head and hopped out of the vehicle. the emt protested but steve walked faster. 

honestly? he felt like shit. he was sure something was broken, in his abdomen, face, or hands wasn’t clear. however, steve was kept upright by adrenaline and the need to verify the safety of robin and the kids. in the back of his mind, steve felt a hint of worry for nancy and jonathon, but he knew they could hold their own. sweeping his dropping eyes across the fleet of ambulances, steve finally laid eyes on dustin, robin, and erica sitting in an ambulance. surrounding them were the other members of the party, bar will and max. steve broke into a sprint, dodging officers and medics as he went. with every step he felt his body scream in pain, but pushed on.

as he approached them, he could hear them. although, thinking about it, steve was too far to hear them over the sirens and fire and people. but he could hear them, all of them individually. he heard mike fretting over el, and el missing hopper. hopper was gone, he’d gathered. steve could hear dustin wondering where he was, as well as robin, and he heard erica telling her brother off.

finally reaching them, steve realized none of them were saying this. they weren’t speaking in hushed tones about the events of the night. steve was surprised, but figured his concussion was fucking with his mind. he sniffed quickly, feeling a tickle in his nose. on arrival, the kids yelled his name in unison and promptly tackled him, el staying behind with robin.

“ah! jesus, you freaks, let me breathe! i’m broken in like four places!” under the children, steve could see robin laughing loudly as el looked at her with wonder.

“steve, where have you been? i was looking for you!” dustin shouted as the dog pile dispersed.

“yeah, man! we thought you croaked!” lucas grabbed his hand for support when steve struggled to move on his own. 

“for real! if you died, though, that would’ve been so lame.” erica grabbed his other hand, and the sinclairs pulled steve to his feet. the boy steadied himself before checking over the kids for injuries.

“they’re fine, dingus. i checked them as soon as they got here,” robin said, having noticed steve’s searching eyes. she laughed. “how are you holding up, big guy?” steve pondered this. he was hearing shit, he was in pain, and thinking about it, he also felt tingly. like all over. and of course, not to mention his massive headache and blinding dizziness. steve pursed his lips.

“i’d say i’m great, buckley. just peachy,” steve grinned his harrington grin and gave a tingly thumbs up. this earned groans from everyone present, except el. steve could feel she was upset, could her a sad song from her direction. this was new. this was definitely new. 

“alright, well i’m gonna head home. i’m sure i’m not needed for the whole, regrouping thing, and when i say i’m tired, i mean it.” steve ruffled dustin’s hair. “which one of you brats needs a ride?”

“steve.” el had spoken. to him. “billy’s alive, and you are different.” she said it so matter of fact, that everyone believed her. besides steve of course. 

“shit, he’s alive? he’s a stubborn bastard though, so i can see it.” steve decided to ignore the last thing she said, because he was literally just about to go home and access his mental state. el seemed to know this because she grabbed his sleeve softly. 

“steve.” the girl planted her feet, reminding steve of someone. “you are different.”

“el, what do you mean, different?” mike piped up, stepping forward to gently take el’s other hand.

“uh, i think what she means is awesome, because that’s totally me,” steve chuckled, making eye contact with el. he hoped she’d understand his pleading look. her eyes softened and she backed up. mike whispered in her ear but she shook her head softly, eyes still on steve. “so… who needs a ride?”

several hands went up.

~~~***~~~

after dropping off the sinclair’s and dustin, it was just steve and robin in the car. it was a comfortable silence, a peace that both of them needed, especially after the night they’d had. robin kept sneaking glances at steve, he felt it, but he’d decided to ignore it. 

something IS wrong with him. that girl was right, whoever she is. it didn’t sound like she was talking to steve. writing it off as hallucinations from his headache, steve continued to drive. he sniffed, feeling the tickle again. 

“so… how are you really holding up, dingus?” steve knew this was for him, so he pondered his answer. 

“well, i got kidnapped by crazy russians, tortured, drugged, and interrogated mercilessly. i think i’m doing great, darling,” steve teased. robin scrunched her nose up at the line, giving steve the reaction he’d wanted. they both laughed loudly. by the time they’d calmed down, steve had pulled into robin’s driveway. the two looked at each other for a bit.

“look steve, about what i told you—“

“robin, i’m not going to tell anyone, and i’m not mad, and i accept you,” steve cut her off, seeing she was going to go on a rant. robin stopped, and smiled a real smile. 

“well, i guess that’s that.” robin punched steve’s arm before she got out of the car. afterwards, robin leaned into the open window and wiggled her eyebrows. “but how about we talk about this billy guy?”

steve damn near had an aneurysm. if robin was saying what steve thought she was saying, he would die. he HATED billy. well, he didn’t really anymore, after seeing the shit he’d done for el, for all of them. but billy was a guy, and steve— no, he was not going into this tonight. his head was too rattled for it. so instead, steve shook his head mockingly at her. 

“goodbye, robin,” steve singsonged as he rolled the window up. the girl cackled as she turned to go into her house. steve chuckled and pulled out of the driveway.

once home, steve felt the adrenaline vacate his body. all at once, he felt the weight of what he’d gone through tonight crash onto him like a bag of rocks. he had been kidnapped by evil russians, been drugged by them, tortured, and then had seen the death of the mind flayer, which was fucking gross. and, billy was now good, he guessed? that, steve never saw coming. 

growing more and more tired with each step, steve eventually made it to his room. the bed looked like it was spinning, but so did the room. when did he get this dizzy? steve flopped onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. colors bursted into his vision, and steve leaned over the side of his bed and threw up. after that, he blacked out. 

~~~***~~~

steve didn’t know why he thought he’d get solace in sleep. the last thing he remembered was puking, and then he was here. at first, steve was confused as to why he was standing outside his own house in the snow. but then, three things hit steve at once. 

one: this was not snow. 

two: this didn’t look like his house, exactly. 

three: this was the upside down. 

the force with which he realized these things knocked him to the ground. feeling the thin layer of slime underneath his hands and feet made steve groan out loud. he couldn’t be here. from what he’d gathered from the party’s hard to follow conversations, el had closed the gate for good. and steve had never been to the upside down, so how was he here now? 

slowly, as not to lose his footing, steve stood up and took in his surroundings. yes, he was in front of his house. calling it his house was a stretch, honestly. it just looked wrong. there were weeds, veins, and slime all over it, pulsating with a dim white light. the “snow” was seemingly suspended in the air, moving only when displaced by steve himself. 

“hello?” his voice echoed in the weirdest way. “is… is anyone here?”

steve knew this was a dumb thing to say, as the only things here would be demogorgons and other variants of that. 

as if on cue, steve heard an ear piercing screech. one that was too familiar. running to his not-house, steve realized he wasn’t in pain. looking down at his fingers, he saw bruises. another screech rang through the damp air, rousing steve from his thoughts and prompting him to go get his bat. steve really hoped it was still by his bed. 

wrenching open the door, steve was met with what could only be described as a nest. there were slimy vines— veins?— all throughout the house, and a thin film lay over every surface. 

“jesus— this is disgusting, god dammit— if this is still here when i wake up—“ steve stopped in his tracks. how could he forget? he was dreaming. this was a dream. right?

multiple screeches pierced his ears, closer than before. dream or not, steve needed his bat. he ran up the stairs and into his room. unluckily, his room had also been infected by the vines that plagued the rest of the house. steve quickly dropped to his knees and pulled the bat out from under the bed. swinging it around a couple of times, steve felt the muscles in his shoulders tense immediately. 

the screeches were a lot closer. steve wasn’t sure if he should go out or stay inside. go out would have steve meet them before they got him cornered, though. having made up his mind, steve opened his bedroom door and carefully descended the stairs. he could hear the squishing footsteps of some otherworldly monster outside his front door. 

leaning down, steve looked through the peephole. outside were three gigantic creatures, that steve could only describe as horrifying. they had three legs the held them up like a tripod, a fleshy, webbed, and slimy pair of wings, and a huge horned head, complete with the signature flower petals. steve had to cover his mouth to avoid yelping in fear. these were completely new, and infinitely more intimidating than the demogorgon and -dogs. 

steve knew he wouldn’t survive a fight with these things. he absolutely knew that. but steve also knew he was dreaming. 

keeping his face up to the peephole and one hand holding the bat, steve pinched himself. hard. it hurt like a bitch, but he didn’t wake up. he did it again. he didn’t wake up. steve slapped himself in the face, sucking in air through his teeth at the pain. 

this noise got the attention of the demo— things. all three of the stopped prowling around his front porch and looked directly at the door. almost incapable of looking away, steve quietly gripped his bat with both hands. he flexed his fingers over the handle and planted his feet. the monsters drew closer. 

steve slowly walked backwards away from the door, it never leaving his line of sight. however, he was still steve. his foot caught a vine and dropped him right on his ass. 

“ah! fuck,” steve slapped a hand over his mouth, knowing he was too late. ah shit. 

the monsters broke down the door, rushing in with their petal faces opened, and wings flexing. they were screeching so loudly, steve felt like his bones were vibrating. all three of the creatures advanced on him cautiously, their leathery skin glinting with thin film of gunk. 

steve’s breath was heavy and his heart was beating fast. he was acutely aware of both, and knew the monsters heard them too. steve stared at them for what felt like hours. the creatures stared back, at least steve figured they were. you know, the whole “no eyes” thing. 

although he knew it was only a couple of seconds, steve felt like the staring lasted much longer than that. the spell was broken by steve dropping the bat. the clanging sound startled the beasts, and then advanced quickly. steve leaped back in terror, and then it went black. 

~~~***~~~  
steve very much did not shriek. instead of waking up in his bed, steve woke to falling onto his bed, as if he was thrown. and, maybe he was yelling, like a man. and what about it? steve groaned loudly and decided to not unpack his dream. 

the morning after was worse than anything steve had gone through the night before. the phone rang. originally steve had perked up at the sound of the phone, but it stopped before he could get to it. sitting up slowly, steve called his mom, figuring it had been her. when he answered, he simply said that he’d seen the explosion, been caught under some rubble, and was taken care of at the hospital. his mother said nothing else but “good.” and then hung up. steve sighed. he felt a tingle in his nose and quickly swiped his hand under it before standing up and stretching. 

not really expecting another call, steve decided he’d try to shower. considering he was in pain literally everywhere and still felt the slime from his dream, steve stripped and turned the water on. while the water ran, steve sat on the toilet, his hands on his thighs. every time he closed his eyes, he could see the monsters. their slimy skin, smelled their rancid breath, feel the shrieks pierce his ears. 

steve looked in the mirror quickly, to assess the damage done by the previous night. his eyes were less swollen, but still bruised. his face was bruised as fuck, and his nose didn’t seem to be totally broken. turning his head, steve noticed his ears had dried blood all over them. steve didn’t remember getting hit there. once again, he decided to leave it for now in lieu of a warm shower. he’d tell dustin later, when he picked him up for their campaign. 

as he showered, steve thought of dustin, and the party. he hoped they were faring okay in the aftermath. he knew that el was really distraught over the loss of hopper. steve let the water run over his face, and worried about the kids some more. 

suddenly, his body felt tingly, like it did yesterday. steve opened his eyes quickly, finding he wasn’t in the shower anymore. he went to cover himself only to discover he was wearing his scoops ahoy uniform. steve looked around the vast black room he’d entered. there was water up to his ankles, and a soft static noise coming from somewhere up ahead. steve squinted, and could see a girl, sitting on the ground. steve decided it’d be best to go to her, considering he had absolutely no idea what was happening. 

as he approached, the girl noticed him. she turned around and— no fucking way. that was el. steve was never going to hear the end of this. 

“steve?” el stood up quickly, swiping the blood from underneath her nose. unconsciously, steve did the same when he felt the tingle. “steve. you’re bleeding. like me.”

“el, what are you doing here? where am i?” steve looked at his hand, seeing that there was indeed blood there. 

el was about to talk when there was a distant knocking sound. steve turned to find the source if the noise but only saw black. he turned back to el to see her smiling. 

“you’re like me. brother.” the knocking got louder. 

“el, what—“ steve was, he could only describe it as, pulled from the room. 

steve stepped back into his bedroom. when did he get there? he was in his bathroom. looking down, steve saw that he was still naked. his hair was still dripping. what the fuck? 

the knocking came again. loud and clear and real. that was real. steve felt another tingle in his nose and reached up to feel a liquid above his mouth. he was bleeding. like el. steve quickly threw on one of his dad’s huge sweaters that he stole and the first pair of sweatpants he saw. however, as steve went to leave his room, he noticed the knocking stopped. 

before he could even finish the thought, he heard a knock on his window. steve startled hard and fell back into the wall. wait. frantically turning around, steve saw that he was indeed against and wall. steve also saw that he was on the total opposite side of the room. he hadn’t been there just seconds before. his nose was bleeding again. 

steve swiped it away and ran to the window, needing a distraction. this, however, was a terrible distraction. there, at his second story window, stood robin. she waved at steve with a smile, and quickly grabbed the sill once steve opened the window. 

“steve! steve, oh my god,” robin jumped inside his room like she hadn’t just been standing on nothing outside his second story window. the girl rubbed a hand across her nose. “steve. listen to me.”

“robin, i— what the fuck was that? what the fuck? shit,” steve threw his hands in the air. “how did you get up there? oh my god. i’m dreaming aren’t i? i must be.”

“shut it, dingus!” robin grabbed steve’s shoulders, effectively bringing steve out of his panic. “i think the russians gave us superpowers.”

there was a moment of silence before steve started yelling.

**Author's Note:**

> my first ever post on ao3!!!! im SUPER excited for this story, mostly bc ive been sitting on the idea for a good year!!!! this is inspired by “emotion sickness” by shypt!!!! their story is a m a z i n g!!! buuut yeah i hope u enjoyed!!!


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